Winter Hardtail 'build'

jamski

Not a build from scratch, but it's more than I've done before. Most bits are from my written off Pro FS. New full suss to follow soon hopefully. This is my project bike to learn on and tinker with.

Started out as a standard spec bar the saddle and grips. Here's the bike when I got it home.



New grips went on then I already had the Minion DHF, chainstay protector, pedals, saddle, seatpost, QR clamp and seatpost ring.



The wheel QRs were pretty scratched up, so those were replaced and I swapped over the Guide Brakes from the Pro FS.




Next came making it 1x. My fitness at the moment meant the TINY chain ring was fine, so sticking with that and the standard cassette for now. At this point I kept the mech to use as a guide and it's not a n/w chain ring. All worked perfectly.



As we currently stand. I've taken the front mech, cable and shifter off, and popped on a new enduroguard and a chainguide. Had trouble finding one for such a small chainring for a decent price, but ended up with this which is perfect. All in, so far, it's cost £210 including the bike. Pretty pleased.

dudemanchoo72

I love the look of this. Subtle mods have made a big difference to the look of the bike. I’m jealous of the 1x setup. Good build and for sensible spending too. I’ve got those grips on mine 8)

slc123

Nice work, although let's hope the winter ends soon! I built a bike over the winter period with a view that I would ride my existing XC bike through the winter (did a few winter upgrades similar to you) but as the weather has been so censored the new bike hasn't had many miles other than a couple of weekends away riding bike parks!

Nice to see the gnomes inspecting your progress.

jamski

Thanks guys. Yeah the gnomes keep me company. I can’t help but feel the 1x is a bit of a bodge! Even the bolts seemed to still fit ok after removing the bigger ring. But it seems to work fine. All just seemed a bit easy.

Roll on spring for sure. Should be a new full suss on the way then too. Thanks for the nice words.

slc123

Doesn't look too bad to me... If it works it works.

It can always look cleaner with a direct mount ring, but a you mentioned if you are just riding it as a winter project it's best to keep it cheap.

Out of interest what size is the chain ring and how did you find it? I've got quite a small direct mount chain ring on the bike I built and it has seemed pretty good so far.

jamski

It's a 27 tooth, and was just the small ring on the 2x setup. All I did was remove the big ring, and away I went. Far too easy!

slc123

Certainly one way of doing it. I've got 3x9 on my current Cannondale XC bike, which I am retiring for the spring/summer in favour of my new build. I think I will strip it and rebuild it over the summer ready for next winter. I was contemplating going 1x11 on it. What you've done here could be an option for me.

jamski

slc123 wrote:

Certainly one way of doing it. I've got 3x9 on my current Cannondale XC bike, which I am retiring for the spring/summer in favour of my new build. I think I will strip it and rebuild it over the summer ready for next winter. I was contemplating going 1x11 on it. What you've done here could be an option for me.

I think your small ring on the 3x would be too small, and you'd certainly need shorter bolts, unless you possibly use a bashguard. DO you know what teeth are on each chainring, the middle one could possibly work?

slc123

You are right, the small ring is only a 22. The middle is a 32, which could be ideal. A new chainring shouldn't be too expensive anyway if needs be. Will need to check the hub for compatibility but pretty sure it will take a Shimano 10 or 11 speed.

02gf74

slc123 wrote:

Rear brake hose looks to be banjo fitting. You know that by slightly loosening the nut holding it in ply, you can twist it for better alignment of the brake hose?

No risk of any leakage as long as undo it just enough to twist, then tighten when done.